Summary :

Using the SAHWA survey, this paper examines the determiannts and impact of the education-job mismatch in three North African countries . The results show that men and low educated workers are more likely to be in an unmatched situation. The presence of unem- ployed in the household has ambiguous effects (positive in Algeria and negative in Tunisia). Youth living in urban areas are less likely to be in the ”Unmatched situation” compared to young people living in rural areas. The analysis of the distribution of wages by types of job ”Matched” vs ”Unmatched” shows a difference between the countries, with a large positive gap in Morocco, a lower gap in Algeria and no difference between Matched and Unmatched jobs in Tunisia. The estimation of the determinants of wages shows that youth who are in the Unmatched situation earn on average less than youth who are in the ”Matched Situation” at least in the case of Algeria and Morocco. The results show also that men in an Unmatched Situation earn more compared to women in the same situation.